The Finger Paint Thing
by Puppyloveimani
Summary: The cute oneshot story of how the dangerous duo met. An idea that came to mind that I just HAD to type!


**A/N**: Hi! ~waves~ I'm getting' to live writein'! This idea poped into mah head and I tend to forget things so I've typed it up.

Disclaimer: I don't own El Tigre or it characters…

_The finger paint thing_

"What? Your still mad at 'er?" Manny asked as his best friend, Frida, shared a twitch eyed glare with her rival Zoë Avez, having just informed him that she wasn't invited to her birthday party. She spun around to face him.

"Duh! Remember the 'finger paint' thing?" she asked. Manny rolled his eyes up thoughtfully. Then he smiled. Of course he remembered the day they met…

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~_**Flashback**_~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~__

Young 3 ½ year old Manny Rivera shyly stepped past the threshold to the preschool playroom. It was his first day. He looked around the room at fellow 3-year-olds. Some played with half broken toys, some slept on colored mats, others, also here for the first time just walked around trying to find someone to play with.

"Daddy? Why do I haf at stay here?" the small, curly haired boy asked.

"Well, Manny…" Rodolpho started "I have to go fight evil and jour mother wants to start her singing career. Plus we both thing you need some friends."

Manny looked up at his father with wide, puppy like, eyes. "But why?"

"Mijo, I fight evil to keep the city, and especially you and jour mother, safe and jour mother wants to live her dream." Rodolpho explained. Suddenly a loud crash came from outside. "And speaking of evil, I must go! Okay, be good!" he said running out the door leaving Manny in the playroom.

The small child's eyes began to well with tears that soon began flowing down his chubby cheeks. A second later, the caretaker came to comfort him "You must be Manny!" she brightly. Manny, using his sleeve, dried his wet cheeks, and nodded. "Well, I'm Ms. Kay. Don't you want to join the other children and play?" Manny shook his head, 'no'. "That's alright, little one, come with me."

Ms. Kay led Manny to a small multi colored table. And motioned for him to sit down. He sighed. There was no one at the table with him. He looked up at the caretaker once again. "It's alright, Manny, when your ready you can join the other children."

Manny looked at the others once again. Suddenly something, _actually someone_, caught is eye from across the room.A blue haired girl. She had something that he couldn't identify on top of her head which he guessed were red having just learned his colors. She turned around and spotted him. She smiled and waved cheerfully, her tongue hanging from one side of her mouth. She giggled.

"Do you wanna play?!" she hollered. Manny shyly nodded. The little girl smiled. She grabbed her tray of finger paints and started to make her way across the room.

Zoë Avez, the only 3-year-old who could pas for 5 based on her vocabulary and attitude had been watching this. She sneered at the blue haired girl, jealously deep within her. That little girl was, by far, the most popular girl in preschool and everyone, even the caretaker, could see why. The little blue haired wild-child was easily the most fun to play with. Zoë, having an emo attitude didn't really have many friends. Now she swore to make the little blue haired child miserable.

As she passed her by, Zoë held out her, black booted, leg tripping the blue haired girl, Zoë snickered. The girl flew across the room. Once she landed two of the cans of finger paint bounced off her goggles, pushing them down on her eyebrows. The third, a green can of paint, hit her head opening and the contents spilled all over her. She burst into tears as her classmates ran from her, for now she looked like some kind of little monster.

Manny, who saw what happened, didn't run. Instead he grabbed a towel off the table and ran to the paint covered girl. He threw it on her head, and started to rub the paint away. Once he managed to clean her head and face, he put his arms around her neck to hug her. To comfort her. After a moment, she hugged back crying in his shirt. He pulled back and, using the same paint stained towel, patted large tears from her cheeks.

"Are joo okay?" Manny asked. She nodded. "What your name?"

"Fwida…" she answered, stopping her sobbing. "What your name?"

"Manny!" he answered holding his head up proudly. Frida giggles. Suddenly, having found the source of the commotion, Ms. Kay came trotting toward Frida and Manny.

"Frida, darling, are you alright?" she asked with concern. Frida latched back onto Manny and nodded. Ms. Kay smiled "Good. Now what happened?"

"I guess I twiped." was all Frida said.

Manny immediately started looking around for one kid in specific. Then he saw her attempting to hide herself in the shadows of the colorful room. "I know waut happen!" he spouted "Dat gurl over dare twipped Fwida!"

Zoë scrambled forward "Nah-uh! I did not!" she shouted defensively.

"Yea-huh!" Manny shouted back. The two glared at each other.

"Now Zoë, tell the truth did you trip Frida?" Ms. Kay asked folding her arms.

Zoë grumbled. "Alright! So I tripped stupid Frida. So what?!" she snarled turning her nose up.

"Zoey, that wasn't very nice. Now I have to call you mother."

"Whatever"

Ms. Kay took Zoë away into her office. The little emo girl didn't take her eyes off Manny and Frida, a deadly glare on her face. She couldn't even cry like most kids would. She was just too irritated.

About 5 minuets later, Ms. Kay emerged from her office. "It's alright children! You can come out now!" she announced. Suddenly the kids hopped from their various hiding placed. They came spilling from file cabinets, toy boxes and under tables and resumed play as though nothing had happened. Afterward, Ms. Kay walked over to the paint covered girl, whom was currently sitting hugged up with her new friend. "Come on Frida. Lets get you cleaned up."

Frida let go of Manny. Ms. Kay picked her up, cradled the girl in her arms and made her way toward the bathroom stopping by the wooden cabinet picking up the change of clothes that Frida's mother left. Manny scurried close behind.

"Ms. Kay! Ms. Kay! Where you takin' 'er?!" he squealed eagerly.

"I'm just taking her to the bathroom, Manny. She can't play all dirty like this. We'll be back in a few minuets. I promise." Ms. Kay explained.

Manny sat eagerly by the girls bathroom door waiting on Ms. Kay and his friend. After about 15 minuets the two females came from the bathroom, Frida was now all clean and in a new white t-shirt and red shirt and suspenders.

"Alright, little one, she's all yours." Ms. Kay said smiling placing an excitedly squirming blue haired girl on the floor and she immediately ran back into the arms of her new best friend. Ms. Kay smiled once again and returned to tending to the other children.

The two skipped hand-in-hand back into the playroom themselves, their cheeks wide with cheerful smiles.

__________________________________________________________________________

_**Later that day**_

Little Zoë was dragged, kicking and screaming, from the preschool.

"Young lady, stop that!" Lady Voltra screeched, trying to calm her whining child

Young Manny and Frida sat on the stairs snickering as they awaited their parents to come for them. Out of no where a police can pulled up at the curb. A few other newly arriving parents gasped as a tall man, eye patch covering his right eye, blazer complete with multiple medals, stepped from the car.

"Daddy!" Frida cried as the scary man approached the two children. Manny, however, started to shake nervously.

Frida ran to her father and grabbed his finger pulling him toward the school. He chuckled. "What is it mija?"

"I want joo to meet my new fwiend!" she squealed, leading him, half bent over, to Manny.

"Hello Chief Suarez." Ms. Kay greeted stepping outside.

"Afternoon Ms. Kay." he responded taking his finger from his daughter, who ran back to her friend hugging his again. Chief Suarez raised an eyebrow. "What have we here?"

Ms. Kay giggled. "This is little Manny. He and Frida had quite a day together." she said gesturing to the boy standing on the stairs.

"Oh really? Well nice to see my Frida has made a good friend." he said rustling the frightened boys hair. "Well, she'll see you tomorrow but now we must go. Come along Frida."

Chief Suarez picked his daughter up, nodded his 'good-bye' to the caretaker and headed for the car. Frida looked over her fathers shoulder and waved. Manny sheepishly waved back as not a second later his own mother and father came forward.

"I see you made a new friend, mijo." Rodolpho said. Manny nodded.

"Oh how nice! What's her name?" Maria, his mother asked excitedly as her husband took the boy in his arms.

Manny took one last look at the car his new friend was in, then looked back into his parents gleaming eyes.

"Her names Fwida…"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ _**Flashback end**_~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Manny smiled and returned to looking at his old friend who was awaiting his response to her previous question. He chuckles.

"Yea, I remember…" he said smiling.

Thinking back on that day, Frida actually smiled herself.

**A/N**: And here you have it**. **I love this idea. It just seemed so cute! So I typed this up either before I forgot or someone else had the idea. Hope you enjoyed!

Constructive criticism is still very much appreciated here!


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